Archive for the ‘promotion’ tag

This is the story of Ipswich Town’s brilliant promotion winning campaign that earned the Super Blues a place in the inaugural season of the Premier League. For manager John Lyall it was a glorious achievement, in only his second season in charge. And winning the old Second Division Championship meant Town stormed into the top flight in glorious fashion.

This official review of the season includes all the goals and all the highlights, including the celebrations on the promotion-clinching day at Oxford. The crowning of the champions followed with unprecedented scenes of jubilation at Portman Road, when Town beat Brighton in the season’s final match. And the party continued with a triumphant civic reception at the Town Hall.

Re-live the goals and the glory. Featuring Jason Dozzell, Chris Kiwomya, Neil Thompson, Mick Stockwell, Paul Goddard, Phil Whelan, Craig Forrest, David Linighan, player of the season John Wark and the rest of the Blues heroes who made it a season to remember.

How fitting that Paul Scholes – the outstanding English footballer of his generation – will be honoured by the return of Eric the King to Old Trafford.

Eric Cantona will coach the legendary New York Cosmos who take on Manchester United on Friday 5 August in the testimonial for the incomparable Scholes.

Cantona quit United in 1997 after winning four titles and two domestic doubles in his five seasons at the club.

“I am looking forward to returning to Old Trafford in my new role with New York Cosmos,” said Cantona.

“I wish to congratulate Paul for such an incredible career at Manchester United.”

Scholes, who announced his retirement in the wake of United’s Champions League final defeat by Barcelona, said: “I have spent my whole footballing life at Manchester United, so this will be an emotional farewell.

“I hope the fans enjoy the night, especially seeing the boss and Eric battling it out in front of the dugouts.”

A City United by a unique League and Cup double on the same day – but what a disgrace that the Premier League trophy was not presented to the Reds. Were they worried this would eclipse City’s FA Cup win

Welcome to the dawning of a new era with the City of Manchester now well and truly the centre of the footballing universe. And mark my words this is great news for United because there is nothing like a new challenge to keep you on your toes.

In case you needed a reminder the United are still the top dog, it was sweet irony that once again United eclipsed City on the day Roberto Mancini’s men claimed their first trophy in 35 years.

As City beat Stoke 1-0 at Wembley to win the FA Cup thanks to Yaya Toure’s late strike, United fans were already back in Manchester celebrating another Premier League triumph and a record-breaking 19th League title courtesy of their 1-1 draw at Blackburn secured by Wayne Rooney’s penalty.

Does anyone doubt Rooney’s dedication to Man Utd now? After scoring the penalty that clinched the Reds’ 19th Premier League title win, Wazza celebrated in bizarre fashion by shaving the number ’19’ into his chest and posting a photograph of it on Twitter.

But this was a day for Manchester to be United in celebration. Not just because the City can proudly boast the unique feat of winning two trophies on the same day. It is great for Manchester to be the undisputed Mecca of fooball. Even Milan can no longer match the glamour of England’s hotbed of football. And the odds are that the new intensity is here to stay.

I remember the end of the 60s when United and City last dominated football in this country. It was great for both clubs. And this time that great rivalry can last much longer than it did back in the days of Best, Law, Charlton and Lee, Bell, Summerbee.

With Liverpool getting their act together under the legendary Kenny Dalglish, what are the odds on the North-West giants occupying the top three positions in the Premier League next season and eclipsing the fading stars of Chelsea and Arsenal.

My bet is that Sir Alex Ferguson’s record-breakers will face a rejuvenated challenge from Liverpool next season as the Merseysiders seek to match United’s 19th League title. When Chelsea frivolously handed the Pool £50million for Fernando Torres Dalglish invested the money wisely and now has a good mix of established stars and exciting upcoming youngsters.

But the real fascination will be how much ground can neighbours City make up on Fergie’s champions after ending their 35 year wait for a trophy to add to their qualification for the Champions League.

There is no doubt City must spend another vast fortune if they want to rival the Reds at the top table. But that will be harder said than done despite their untold riches and their Champions League status.

The reason is the introduction of UEFA’s new Financial Fair Play rules.

Michel Platini has warned that the likes of big-spending Manchester City and Chelsea, and some of Europe’s biggest clubs, will have to ‘face the music’ if they do not comply with the new FFP regulations.

UEFA’s latest figures show that financial problems affecting European clubs are getting worse, with spending on player wages up almost 10 per cent – and increasing at a faster rate than income.

Under their new rules, clubs will face possible bans from European competition from the 2014/15 season if they spend more than they earn in the three years before.

Sir Alex Ferguson hugs Ryan Giggs as United celebrate record 19th title – both have won an unprecedented 12 Premier League trophies

There is much more than the Premier League title at stake when Manchester United face down defending champions Chelsea in the mother of all showdowns at The Theatre of Dreams on Sunday.

When Sir Alex Ferguson famously arrived at Old Trafford 25 years ago and said he’d arrived to knock Liverpool off their perch this is what he was talking about. A record breaking 19th League title will see The Red Devils finally eclipse their Merseyside rivals.

The football world asked themselves who was this crazy Glaswegian who thought he could achieve what seemed an impossible feat when he made his proud boast all those years ago.

“How long did this guy think he was going to be in the job,” says former England boss Graham Taylor, a reaction that was pretty much the universal response from everyone in the game.

But here we are a quarter of century later and the last man standing who can stop Fergie achieving that impossible dream is Carlo Ancelotti manager of a resurgent Chelsea side who have clawed back a 15 point deficit to stand just three points behind the League leaders with three matches remaining.

Fergie must get past Ancelotti to claim United's record-breaking 19th title

Victory for the Blues will put them top on goal difference with two to play. But any other result will surely put United on the road to the prize that United fans want above all other.

It s going to be a classic content, the occasion guarantees that it will be something special. And how great will it be for Fergie to effectively secure the record 19th title with victory over Ancelotti in front of a full house at Old Trafford – not to mention 600 million homes around the globe.

Tonight’s first installment of the Champions League semi-final between Real Madrid and Barcelona is going to be fascinating. And if it’s half as fierce as the pre-match mind-games it’s going to be another El Classico.

In one corner we have Madrid boss Jose Mourinho insisting: “I am not asking the referee to help my team. If the referee is good everyone will be happy – except Guardiola. He wants them to get it wrong.This is something I have never seen in the world of football.”

While the Barca boss hit back with an uncharacteristic foul-mouthed tirade declaring: “In the press room he is the [expletive] chief. He is the [expletive] man. I try not to play the game off the pitch.” Added Pep Guardiola: “He’s much better than me at it. I represent an institution that believes this is not the best way to do things.”

On the pitch it’s Lionel Messi v Cristiano Ronaldo. Can’t wait for the kick-off at the Bernabeu.

FOOTBALL FANS and the media are so fickle it is hard to take them seriously when they instantly call for the manager’s head whenever things don’t go according to plan. And this time it is Arsene Wenger who is the target for the baying mob.

When Arsenal allowed two points to slip away for the second time in four days and let North London rivals Tottenham fight back from two goals down to earn a 3-3 draw, it was inevitable that radio phone-ins would be swamped with disgruntled Gunners fans calling time on the greatest manager in their history.

A few days ago the media was telling us that Carlo Ancelotti is a dead man walking at Stamford Bridge following the Blues Champions League exit at the hands of title rivals Manchester United.

But with five matches remaining, the race for the Premier League is still very much alive – despite United holding a six point advantage over their two London rivals. Wenger and Ancelotti still have the chance to finish up with a piece of silverware if United slip up – and that makes it even more ridiculous that the media and the fans are already writing off the London bosses.

It remains odds on that the title will go to Old Trafford. And yet there is still everything to play for because there is mounting pressure on Sir Alex Ferguson’s men who have yet to face both Arsenal and Chelsea either side of their decisive Champions League semi-final second leg against Schalke.

Certainly there is no margin for error when United face Everton at home on Saturday lunchtime, ahead of Chelsea’s game against West Ham and Arsenal’s Monday night trip to Bolton.

Thirty years ago Ipswich Town were on for the Treble and had to settle for the UEFA Cup

Thirty years ago Ipswich Town were heading for a Treble when Sir Bobby Robson’s men were derailed in the FA Cup by Manchester City. On that occasion Aston Villa came strong on the rails to take the Championship – and Robson’s team had to settle for the UEFA Cup.

Fergie knows he still has a big job on his hands to go one better than his old friend. And it is no surprise Manchester United’s manager is still fuming over the referee’s failure to award a pivotal penalty at the end of Tuesday night’s goal-less draw at Newcastle.

MICHAEL JACKSON was the King of Pop and many of us will love his music forever – but to put his statue outside Fulham’s Craven Cottage is a joke.

Jacko famously went there ONCE to watch Fulham beat Wigan 2-0. But do me a favour! This is an embarrassment for the fans of a club that has been graced by many famous players who could have been immortalised with a lasting tribute at the Cottage.

Mohamed Al Fayed commissioned the statue of his friend with the intention of putting it outside the Harrods department store. Now Al Fayed, who subsequently sold Harrods, has decided he will unveil it outside his Fulham football ground at midday on April 3.

There is no argument that Al Fayed is spot on when he says: “Michael Jackson was truly a legend, a term used too often in this modern world saturated in the hyperbole surrounding celebrity.”

But a statue at Craven Cottage? As Wacko Jacko would have said: “That’s Bad!”

Funny footnote: Asked if he was a fan of Michael Jackson, Fulham manager Mark Hughes said ‘Yes, I’m a fan.” But when the cheeky interviewer quickly asked him to name his favourite Jacko song the red-faced Hughes had to confess: “Haven’t a clue.”

England's entertainers the most exciting team to watch at the 2011 Cricket World Cup

ENGLAND are doing their best to make the Cricket World Cup interesting – and for the sake of a competition that is far too long every lover of the one-day game must be praying Andrew Strauss and his men make it through to the quarter-finals.

For the sixth match in succession, England were involved in a rollercoaster of a contest. This time it was a thriller against the West Indies which swung back and forth right through to the end before England kept their World Cup campaign alive with a dramatic 18-run win.

Jonathan Trott (47) gave England a fast start but wickets tumbled in the middle overs and they were dismissed for 243. The Windies looked to be cruising to victory at 222-6 in the 42nd over, but amazingly collapsed to 225 all out.

The win means England are through to the quarter-finals- unless Bangladesh beat South Africa on Saturday and the West Indies get at least a point against India. And that would put England just two victories away from the World Cup final.

Former England captain Michael Vaughan, summarising on BBC Radio’s Test Match Special, said Strauss’s side should not be ruled out in an open tournament lacking a truly outstanding team.

“You wouldn’t think England are playing well enough at the moment to win the World Cup, and they haven’t yet produced an all-round performance – but they’ve proved that in these tight games, all you need is to score one more than the opposition.”

Hosts India need England to stay in a tournament that is far too long spread over six weeks. The Final in Mumbai is not until April 2.

THE PUBLIC debate over Sir Alex Ferguson’s five match touchline ban has been fascinating. the anti-Manchester United brigade on one side and the realists on the other. But the fact remains that Fergie was only telling the truth. And his defiance is actually for the good of the game.

It is disappointing to hear influential journalists like Henry Winter of the Telegraph declare that Fergie has been ‘let off lightly’. Former Chelsea midfielder turned pundit Andy Townsend told ITV viewers United’s manager has ‘crossed the line.” And football phone-ins have been full of so-called experts declaring the 5-match ban is fair enough for doubting the referee’s integrity.

But football owes Sir Alex a debt of gratitude for challenging the outdated rule that the referee’s decision must not be questioned. Why on earth not? As I have said before, in this modern age football is a laughing stock when the watching world can instantly see the match officials have made a gross misjudgmenet.

Ferguson swiftly apologised to clarify that he was not questioning the referee’s integrity. Surely Ferguson and any other manager in the game is entitled to state his opinion when he believes the referee has made a mistake – as Arsene Wenger did when Rob Van Persie was disgracefully sent off in Barcelona and Avram Grant did at the weekend after West Ham’s FA Cup defeat at Stoke.

Both Wenger and Grant are now in the dock and facing punishment (which if football’s governing bodies are going to be consistent will be similarly severe, but that is another story!). But Ferguson, Wenger, Grant and the countless other managers who criticize referees are not doing anything unlawful.

This is 21st Century Britain where we pride ourselves on freedom of speech and fair play. What the Football Association should be tackling is how to improve refereeing standards and introduce technology to make the game fairer for all.

Alex Ferguson criticizes referee Martin Atkinson

Rival football fans often ridicule Sir Alex for pointing to his watch and insisting that injury time is added at the end of matches. But they all have United’s manager to thank because he is largely responsible for the official introduction of injury time being announced at the end of all matches. And that is far better than the old system when no-one knew how much time would be added on.

Hopefully one day the game will find a way of stamping out bad refereeing decisions and not take the easy option of punishing a manager for telling the truth.

As former manager Kevin Blackwell said on BBC Radio this morning: Fergie was right and if he is being honest even Martin Atkinson will admit he made bad decisions in the Chelsea match.

FABIO CAPELLO may have been a successful club manager in Italy – but the England job is just too big for him. And the latest embarrassing saga of whether or not John Terry will replace the injured Rio Ferdinand as skipper is the last straw.

Capello’s latest error of judgment has embrassed Rio Ferdinand

The way Capello – who got it so hopelessly wrong at last summer’s World Cup in South Africa – has been manipulated by the media proves it is time for him to make way for Harry Redknapp, the outstanding English manager of his generation.

Even thinking about handing the captain’s armband back to John Terry on a permanent basis is a disgrace. But to chew the matter over with the press and appear to write off Ferdinand before he has discussed it with the player is shameful.

The England captaincy has become a big issue for Capello following February’s friendly against Denmark when Frank Lampard, Gareth Barry and Ashley Cole all wore the armband at different stages of the match because Ferdinand and Steven Gerrard were both out injured.

“I was really upset about what happened in Denmark, when I saw the players saying ‘who is the captain?’,” said Capello. “After one year of punishment, it was not the best moment for John Terry to see this. For that reason, I need to make a decision – and it will be a permanent decision, not just one game.”

Terry was stripped of the captaincy in February 2010 after reports surfaced that he had an affair with the former partner of England team-mate Wayne Bridge. Ferdinand, 32, was made captain. But has since made only four appearances for England and will miss the upcoming game against Wales because of problems with his back and calf.

Capello wants Terry back – how Daily Mail broke the story

Now it seems Capello has been persuaded to re-think his stance by “certain London-based media” close to the Chelsea skipper. England’s bungling boss revealed his thinking over an espresso in an Italian restaurant in Knightsbridge on Monday. His camp now insist no decision has been made but admit Terry is being considered.

He may be an experienced player. But Terry is past his best and has lost respect within the England team for a series of errors of judgement. World Cup skipper Steven Gerrard was undermined by Terry’s arrogant and ill-advised attempt to hold a players’ meeting to discuss their failings in South Africa.

Now Ferdinand has every right to be upset over the way Capello has managed the situation by floating his idea of re-instating Terry in public. It is not the first time the Italian has embarrassed one of his stars in this way. Last August he told the media David Beckham was finished as an England international and admitted in the same interview he had not even discussed it with the player.

Now it is time for the Football Association to tell Capello that he is finished. And the sooner the better.